One week's paid parental leave, the extension of maternity leave to 20 weeks, £100 a month for carers and an increase in child benefit to £50 a week for those under one and to £25 a week for children up to five are among the measures promised by Fine Gael if it got into government.
The party's spokeswoman on social, community and family affairs, Ms Frances Fitzgerald, outlined the proposals in a pre-Budget social welfare programme in Dublin yesterday. In government, she said, Fine Gael would target the most vulnerable in society, particularly those dependent on social welfare.
Given that last year's Budget assumed inflation would run at 3 per cent, that social welfare increases were given on that basis, and that inflation was now more than 6 per cent, incomes had been cut in real terms, she said.
"The Government and, in particular, Minister Dermot Ahern, stand indicted for their treatment of the vulnerable in society. It is hard to believe that in a thriving economy 25 per cent of Irish children - 250,000 in all - are still in poverty," Ms Fitzgerald said.
The party also published a survey of what it called "the childcare crisis".
It noted that 70 per cent of parents found it difficult to access childcare; that more than 40 per cent of childcare was with a family member or friend; and that the average distance children and/or parents travelled to childcare was three miles, with some travelling up to seven miles.
More than 1,000 parents of children under five, in nine constituencies, were interviewed for the survey.
As well as increasing child benefit, Fine Gael would double the resources of health boards for back-to-school clothing and footwear; improve and extend the free school meals scheme; allow childcare costs to be disregarded in assessment for the Family Income Supplement; and introduce a capitation payment of £10 a week for childcare.
Ms Fitzgerald also outlined measures to target other vulnerable groups, such as women in poverty, the elderly, carers and asylum-seekers.
